Gore. Guest i sure am. Host i like the story of the recount, a horrendous time of taking on the issue. It was one thing after another but the biggest one is when you were running against Carly Fiorina. I see what you are doing and up against. You are running and i thought now that we have seen Carly Fiorina running for president , you kind of put it away in that. But the moment when she got caught on air talking about your hair from the people are into these issues men wouldnt have to deal with. Guest its interesting and im glad you brought it up because it is an amazing lesson for the people watching this. Things happen that you dont expect. I was running in 2010, and Carly Fiorina was considered a toptier candidate. She had millions of her own that she had gotten when she got her golden parachute and got fired for hewlettpackard. She had millions of dollars to throw into the race and it was neck and neck because we were in the deepest recession trying to help the president in the stimulus bills. I remember standing on the floor just looking at us losing tens of thousands. California was a mess. The real estate situation hit us. We were struggling. Families were distraught. It was everything from even when it rained. Shes blaming everything on me, and its tight. And im saying we dont want to elect her. Shes saying Barbara Boxer is responsible. There is no Climate Change and so anyway, fast forward i think it was cnn. Shes being recorded and doesnt realize it and instead of talking to the staff about how to prepare for the interview, give me the latest issues of the morning news come has there been a change on this, that or the other, she says to her staff have you seen Barbara Boxers hair and her staff said no, what about it . Its so yesterday, and she starts laughing. My hair does have a life of its own. I thought at that moment, everybody does. What is she doing. And saying this its kind of an insult. [inaudible] host she got in trouble with that and i think in the end people understand we are in a hard tim time in what they understoounderstood with you ths including when you stood up against the iraq war there were so many things you were a loan or had a few people youre willing to take. It talks about that through the lens of the issues and history, but also people even when they didnt agree with you. I will buy something, but they dont think that way, like their profiting off of somebodys misery. So now that i have put in that word, but truly, there are things that happen in a campaign that you dont know who the person is really inside. One thing may not be enough but there are a few things that when people saw her making fun of me and not really caring about the issues when the cameras were off and they put it together with the fact that when she was ceo shes shipped tens of thousands of jobs overseas. You know it, not a good person. With a minute left left here, when you look at the incredible career that you pad what do you really want to pass on to people like me. Those who are looking to run for the supervisor seat. What i want to pass on to you and i think i have already passed it on is how to stand up at the top and know that you can win. Do not worry about the arrows. It doesnt matter. When i open up the book i have quotes from the rightwing media have said the worst things about me you can imagine. That is. That is what i want to say to everybody. The empower, stand up for what you believe in, and, and it will be a satisfying life. Thank you barbara. I recommend your book, the art of the top of it because i think it is went to fun to read and people will understand where you came from and it will give them faith and politics run themselves. Thank you. Book tv continues tomorrow night with books on education policy. First, ed bowens bowens account of teaching at a new York City Public High School in the battle for room 314. That is followed by George Thomas who writes about the Founding Fathers and their idea of establishing a national university. After that, monique shares her book, push out, the criminalization of black girls in schools. Then john shields talk about a book he coauthored, passing on the right. Conservative professors in the progressive university. Finally, a look at whether advanced mathematics should be part of the core curriculum for students. Watch book tv in prime time tomorrow night getting at 8 00 p. M. Eastern on cspan2. I q a a documentary film instructor talks about his students awardwinning documentary. Some of which have been grand prize winner at the annual student cam competition. He teaches at Jenks High School in jenks, oklahoma. I am not the kind of teacher who will look at something that is not very good i just go, thats nice, you did you did a nice job with that. I will say thats not working. Eventually, everyone of my kids makes a better better piece than they did in the beginning. Eventually the kids who do really well they are turtle lies this stuff so i no longer have to say to them, their own brain is saying these things to them. Turtle. Welcome to book tv. Former congressman and former chairman of the house government reform committee. Im here to discuss the book by the retired chairman of the house government oversight committee, called watchdog. Watchdog tells about your political history but also about the investigations that you wonder when is chairman of the committee and as a minority member of the committee. Your first election to congress, interesting for readers is that recalling california and the behindthescenes story of how that came about and was financed it has little little bit of chairman todd davis time in it. I think you will learn from my mistakes to move out. But what prompted you to read the book. Guest i think voters right now, they have lost a little bit of hope. They see the wrongdoing, not all of it but some of it and they do not see what difference it makes. So i thought a book that took the stories that people knew about and linked it to what difference it make it would really help people. There were things that were done as a result of our successes. I touch on the fact that you send out, as you did when you were chairman, 2000 letters in a congressional cycle. Most of those end in government complying and making changes, addressing issues. And our investigations, many of them lead to fundamental change. For example, the gsa and a number of a number of other agents including the irs and Veterans Administration all held lavish parties on taxpayers money. Our oversight, theyre making that aware is making sure that your taxpayer dollars are better spent. These kinds of changes are success stories. But i touch on the additional changes. Changes in the freedom of information act. Changes in transparency is come to known as the data acted law. And changes in how congress can bring to the Court Complaints about wrongdoing of the administration. All of of those are part of what we touch on as the next step. What were going to do to create a government more responsive to its people. And we are supposed to be a balance of powers, the judiciary with the executive and the maybe im reminiscing since i Left Congress. It looks like the congressional ranks have been neutered over the last few years. Your book goes to explain some of the things you try to do in the oversight and the importance of oversight from the legislative branch to make sure the executive branch does not get out of control. I think youre hitting the nail on the head. Congress has given up much of its power. They said we will punt over to the administration, then when the Administration Takes all the power you give them and like most bureaucracies take smart they can, we often find our constituents saying, where do we go to get fairness, how is it making vast amounts along. But the interesting one the courts when theyre addressing the oversights of the congress had always sided with legitimate requirement obligation of the administration to comply with our oversight. What they havent done as they have not seen the cases brought to them for what our oversight leads to. So theyre very good at saying yes, you have a right a right to see these documents and call witnesses. But then when we say what youre doing is wrong, if the Administration Simply shows you the back of the handy moves on, we havent we havent been able to get back to the courts and away in which they coincide with us two against one of we are right. And get the administration to do what they need to do. So the Obama Administration has taken a lot of well thought and received grief for being above the law. But theyre not not really. There above congress. When the courts have spoken the Obama Administration have complied. They can put it in the court when theres differences in views with American People and administration. Ministrations never like to give up information. Congress is a nuisance that they have to put up with. As is the Associated Press and all the groups under foia that also want information. Right but when you have subpoena power, youre the only person in the house that have subpoena power on his own signature. At one point held members in contempt of congress, but the administration had to enforce that. And you just get stymied at that point. Guest that was one of the Lessons Learned both during the Bush Administration and your tenure when president bush, his people were held in contempt for not delivering witnesses to the Judiciary Committee and the firing of the u. S. Attorneys. And then again, eric, eric holder when he was withholding unreasonable documents about false statements and coverup in congress and the fast and furious investigation. In both cases we eventually were vindicated by the courts at the administration was over asserting their right to privacy. But it took time. These are covered in the book. Both are covered in the book. They run the clock out. Actually the deal on the u. S. Attorneys was made after the election of barack obama. They suddenly were willing to cut a deal to make it go away but they had already been ordered by judge to do so. In the case of fast and furious, documents are still coming in but the real closing of that will probably happen if the administration is about to turn in the Obama Administration wants to make this go away before they leave. Host i want to get to pass to various but this is a great read, think the readers watchdog, and easy read. Guest its a very readable. Host you are probably the wealthiest members of congress. You talk about your roots and how you started to get into it. Tell the reader about how you got into politics, and i got into business in your successes and some of the trials you went through getting there and how that gets used against you in some of the campaigns. Guest i did grow up just a kid of one of six and a, i would say in a middleclass family who had five less kids. But i was lucky. I was given an opportunity to go to college paid for by the u. S. Army and another four years, like you to serve as an army officer. That took me from a street kid with the likelihood of a bluecollar job on took me to the opportunities to start a business, to have the education and grow a business and ultimately to do well enough that i began looking at what was wrong in our society. The class class warfare that was being instigated but also the question of whether was government probusiness, antibusiness or just not understand business. But you are an arab family and suburban cleveland. What was it like . Like . Guest our ethnic neighborhood was jewish. So we would not have called ourselves arabs we wouldve called yourselves lebanese. But our neighbors, schoolteachers and so on, i was deep in that culture. It was a a great opportunity. It was the 60s. But there is also challenges. The arabisraeli war that broke up 67 when i was a freshman in high school. It was an an interesting time to have older brothers of some of my friends heading off to israel to defend against in a substantial threat. A lot of that was part of it, but also also this was a community of Small Business people, a lot of my neighbors, my friends and families owned Small Businesses, everything from retail shops and manufacturing. It gave me me an opportunity to see that there was, in america and almost unlimited ability to join a company and grow with it or start your own company. My father never had that opportunity until fairly late when he started the business after he had a heart attack. And he could not, quite candidly his career was stifled so he started a business. Growing up i had lots of examples. For all of us who live the American Dream theres always that question of what is next. Politics and philanthropy becomes whats next. My wife does the majority of philanthropy and we have a foundation that is able to help people. I participate, but i really had an interest in trying to get back to have government do a better job on behalf of the American People. I started off as someone coming to washington to describe but i was seen including in the nafta debate i testified on behalf of the chamber. But i did get hooked on it and i help candidates win. That i ran for office myself. You are not a stellar student in college. Youre obviously one of the smartest guys, the you had some learning disabilities to overcome along the way. But you ended up inventing a lot of things. I guess you get your skills in the arming maybe tell us how you built that. Guest i went to college as a business major. It has has been the most appropriate thing for me but i was a tinkerer if you will. I was working on two radios made with a transistor too. In the army i was fortunate enough to head up and organization of engineers and run a computer facility. I got the balance a big big picture, copper hundred Million Dollars facility i ran. I strained and software. When i left the military and figured i could do anything so i joined a bank dropped electronic Manufacturing Firm with a partner. And never really did that well but it got me into business and got me to where i could start looking at inventions of my own. By 1982 in 1983i was starting to invent things and it got my first patent in 1981. And i have had 37 cents. Some of them have done very well. Most most of them have been radio the quincy controlled products. But i was also lucky in that an industry was changing. You stuck a key in the fender to protect your car unlock it. By the time i left it, everything was hightech radio control. It interfaced with the body computers to shut down the car or to open the trunk, whatever you wanted to do. It was a lot of fun because innovating into that kind of space as a car guy is a winwin. Host so youre the Sub Committee now over patents and trademarks which is your first hand experience in this area in terms of how it affects real people. It does, and fixing the Patent Office has been something i have been involved in. It is been something very much a passion. I came to congress with a number of federal judges that became friend after our cases. They have been good counselors and helpers. We passed early on in our career and was called the patent pilot bill. Today that provides federal judges who choose to specialize only somewhat in Patent Litigation with additional capability expertise, clerks. Clerks. So they are able to dismiss these cases, dispatch them if you will quickly and accurately. The calendar of these cases a very complex cases are moving better. The judges the judges are more confident making good rulings with less overturning of appeal. But it is not over. Were innovating as a country and world. Patents are becoming more valuable. As a result people who litigate for a living a very weak patent but for great profit. That is is part of what i am working on. Host you are certainly the right guy of understanding at every level. Host so you came to testify for nafta in 1993. You kind of got the bug with San Diego Chamber kind of adopted you. And you ran for the senate at that point. Guest i ran for senate in 1998. The bug in many ways, you came to san diego in 1996 did you . Host yes i did. Guest i was supervising all the volunteers and they were doling out what everybody should do, and and the guy with the short star got to be the fundraising. I was between the short and long straw. I ended up chairing all the volunteers. We put together about 10,000 volunteers to do everything that needed to be done at that convention. It was the time of my life. I got to know so many people some republicans and some democrats. They were willing to go through weeks and weeks of training preparation to make that a great success. Host it was a Great Convention because of east coast time everything ended early and you have the rest of the night to party. Guest it did allow you to have an early supper followed by a long and enjoyable evening and then sleep in a little bit in the morning. Host i was a congressman at that point from virginia. And then you end up running for senate. Voters probably did you favor and not nominating you that year. Guest i do. I have a real soft spot. He was a was a state treasurer, a superb young man. A graduate of the air force academy. A great candidate. He did not win but he did better in the primary than i did so he became the nominee of our party. Through losing in the primary again to a friend and i gain an opportunity to be seen as someone who would fight hard for they believed in but would then support the nominee of our party. The day after you get your butt kicked in a primary having to shop at a unity breakfast and say good things about somebody, who i liked him but i had hurt feelings. Thats thats when you begin to understand politics. Politics is fighting hard, losing at least half of the time and then coming back to being a gentleman about it and knowing there is another day in which you will try to do things for this co